Chinese Interviews

[DaShi]

Finally got MORE.

[pchang]

From these interviews, it would appear there is no one in china who isn't eligible for AARP membership.

[Mao]

Originally posted by DaShi
Finally got MORE.

Yeah, apparently it was available at the front desk of my dorm...heh, thank the Aussies for that =) I'll be checking some of the places out, thanks a lot!

[mindseye]

Great interviews, thanks for posting them!

[Mao]

There's still more...show them more DaShi...THE PEOPLE DEMAND MORE!!!

[DaShi]

Last one. Thanks for the bump.

Ye Yaosheng

73 years old

He was an apprentice in an automobile brake factory. Then he lost his job after the liberation. Now he is retired; he has a fixed pension, but it's not much, so he sells candles and paper money to make more money and have a better life.

Where did you grow up?

We had a large ancestral home in Shaoxing where my family had lived for generations, but I moved to Hangzhou when I was a small boy. We lost theold home in the fifties, and I still feel upset about it.

Where do you live now?

I live with my wife in Taimiao lane, which is convenient for me. There are many small temples and shrines in the mountains nearby, and I can mak some extra money selling candles and paper money to the people who worship here.

How is your Mandarin

I can't speak any Mandarin, though I can understand most of it when people speak to me. I always speak Hangzhounese with my family and friends.

How did you use to pass the time in the old days?

As a child I had no free time. My family was poor so I was always working and carrying out bicycles repairs to raise some extra money.

How do you pass the time now?

TV has been the most important change in this aspect of my life. My son bought me my first set during the 1980s: a small black-and-white set. I like to watch the soap operas and any shows featuring old revolutionary songs.

What has been the biggest change you have seen in your life?

I sell candles, incense and paper money for the dead, and I've seen the changes in attitude towards religion. When I was a young boy nearly everybody believed in spirits, prayed to Buddha, and made offerings in their ancestors; but after the liberation most tradional beliefs seemed to die out. I thought they were gone, yet I was wrong. People have started coming back to the temples and shrines; so now I can sell my candles once more.

[b]How have people changed? Is there a generation gap?[b]

Society today is very competitive, and this means most young people only care about themselves. During the hard years of my youth there seemed to be kind people everywhere, but now all I see is fighting and selfishness.

Tea or coffee? Beer or baijiu?

In all my life I have never touched alcohol. The only drink I like is green tea.

Do you smoke?

Yes, perhaps I smoked too many cigarettes for too any years, so I decided to quit when I retired.

[Mao]

Hmmm...funny thing I noticed about a lot of Chinese smokers, there's more "I decided to quit, so I did" people than there are, "I kept trying, but it was too too hard!" people. You'd think that all you had to do was decide to quit and it'd happen...

[DaShi]

They're part of the greatest generation. For them, there is no 'it's too hard.'

[Mao]

Originally posted by DaShi
They're part of the greatest generation. For them, there is no 'it's too hard.'

Maybe, but I've heard it from my parents' generation too, and they went through the Cultural Revolution. Hmmm...maybe to get people to stop smoking, you just need huge upheavels and then nothing seems too hard...